Temporary contracts in education raise deeper procurement questions

Nearly 15,000 low-paid education support staff in Northern Ireland—most of them women—are stuck on temporary contracts, with over 2,500 classroom assistants left without permanency despite four years of service. This widespread reliance on insecure staffing not only highlights labour inequalities but also exposes risks in public procurement strategy, workforce planning, and compliance across a critical sector.

Procurement leaders should ask: what are the long-term costs of temporary staffing at scale? And how does this impact service quality, governance, and institutional accountability?

Read the full story to explore the implications for public contracts and strategic workforce policies.